2008-03-11 13:01:27 I actually really love ciocolat. In terms of desserts, I have compared ciocolat's mousse cakes to konditorei's mousse cakes and I honestly detect little difference in the quality of the mousse or the cake (generally I don't like the cake in either shop's mousse cakes). As for their regular menu, I cannot comment on them because I only ever get desserts. I have lately become a big fan of the carrot cake—very moist, and the toasted nuts on the side are a great addition. The truffle cake is alright and their hazelnut cake is to die for! The drinks are rather slow, and there does seem to be some disorder in that respect, but I just order milk with my desserts now to spare myself. The desserts are expensive, but I think they are definitely worth it. If you want a good lunch, go to crepeville. If you want good dessert, go to ciocolat.

2008-04-12 22:40:43 The muffaletta sandwich at Ciocolat is my favorite sandwich in Davis... even above Nugget sandwiches. If I am ever having a bad day and need something to turn it around, I go straight to Ciocolat and get a muffaletta with spring salad side and somehow it makes everything better. The service here is absolutely ridiculous though, so make sure you have plenty of time on your hands before coming here. Trying to get in and out of this place quickly and disaster-free is impossible (I agree with all previous comments about employees being slow and unaware of how to do their job).

Props to the patient lady that stood at the counter for 20 minutes while the employee struggled with putting 4 tiny chocolates into a gift box with gigantic scone tongs. I was behind you in line, and I admire you for tolerating that situation so calmly. —SRB

2008-04-17 18:37:18 I really enjoy Ciocolat. It has a very cute, good atmosphere, perfect for having a nice chat with friends over coffee, tea or their nice desserts. I have taken part in their High Tea service and it is quite nice. They serve you a large amount of food for what you pay for and it is as fancy as it sounds. Unfortunately, I must reiterate everyone else's comments regarding the quality of service at Ciocolat. Every time I go there, the service is always extremely slow (no matter if the place is nearly empty) and the employees always act either confused, put upon or are just not all together there. That is not to say that there are not friendly, competent employees. But they are very few and far between. Perhaps Ciocolat is understaffed? In either case, the quality of service is the only problem I have and the only one that does not have me coming back as often as I'd like. —LizT.

2008-04-20 19:46:24 Ciocolat seems to be reducing or eliminating their lower priced dessert items, and focusing only on their more expensive items. This used to be a good place to go for a small, but very tasty dessert after dinner. But now most of what they are selling is more like a dinner replacement. Large, very high in calories, and expensive. It is no longer a good place to get dessert unless you are *very* hungry, or want something you can take home, because of the huge serving sizes and high prices. —IDoNotExist

2008-04-21 11:40:48 I agree with a lot of the comments here. Nice atmosphere and good food. However, it isn't cheap and the service is very slow for some reason. —CurlyGirl26

2008-05-04 23:21:04 Outrageously rude staff. I came here with some friends for a birthday get-together Thursday afternoon (5/1/2008). One of my friends got a slice of mango mousse. When we got to our table, I noticed that her cake had a tinge of green on the bottom. When we looked closer, we realized it was mold. My friend brought it back to the register and told the server that she thought there was mold on the bottom of her cake. He told her that it was from the key lime cake that they had served earlier in the day without even inspecting it himself. He wouldn't give her a replacement for the obviously molded slice of cake. That wasn't even the worst part of the experience. While she was leaving with her moldy cake, the servers laughed at her and one of them said loudly, "I don't even know what she is talking about!". My friend felt very humiliated.

This wasn't my first time coming here, but this experience will keep me from ever coming back. I will never recommend this place to people I know. Even though the desserts are good, the rudeness of the staff is not worth it.—hannah.lee

Rudeness aside, that doesn't look like mold.. just saying from my experience and a blurry cell photo. Though I wonder if they don't give students much respect, seeing a gross of people on their lawn on picnic day, makes me think they are a bit jaded about students (undergrads), which probably don't account for the majority of customers.

Yeah, from the picture its super hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure it was mold. It wasn't the mold that was upsetting. We could just scrape it off and be okay. It was how the servers handled the situation that got me a little peeved—hannah.lee

2008-05-25 10:13:48 I'm calling bullshit regarding the above comment. I've always had top notch service here, especially from a thin brunette girl whose name I can't think of right now. I've always gotten great recommendations, and if I've had a plate and cup in my hand, the door was always opened for me by staff without me asking. They've always had at least two people working at the counter and I've never waited for service. I guess I just exist in some parallel universe where the service is exceptional here, at least from that particular young lady. —Casey

The above comment isn't the only one that had negative things to say about the service. A good number of comments on this page address poor service. I've been to Ciocolat many times as well and I have never experienced any of the things you did (door opened for us, no waiting.. are we talking about the same place?) but I'm still not going to call "bullshit" on your (or anyone's) personal experience at a restaurant. —SRB

I've been eating at this place since they opened a few years back and I believe they have gone through a couple of owners. The food is still good, but not as good as it used to be. The place is definitely looking more run down and dirty. Last time I was there I saw dust and spiderwebs everywhere, the cake display was dirty and the whole place just looked like it was lacking attention. Definitely not as nice as it used to be. :( —AnaluciaCordova

2008-07-11 14:14:09 I used to like Ciocolat very much, but agree with many of the other comments about the really consistently crappy service. I have not been there for a few months, but went today and was shocked at the state of the place. First, it smelled suspiciously of cat and second I saw no less than three roaches in the ten or fifteen minutes I was in the place. I noticed the first one crawling on the ceiling, it fell and eventually died on top of the display case, but not before it spent a few minutes running around on the croissants (seriously), another one barely missed death by the delivery man as it ran across the floor and another was actually already dead (smashed) when I spotted it under the table I was sitting at. Really sad, I doubt I will ever go back. —Kaite

2008-07-11 15:50:25 I can get desserts much cheaper, cleaner, and prettier at some place else. On the side of that, the owner is very rude and doesn't seem to care his customers. Will not return. —giyoonit

2008-07-11 19:13:22 This place has seriously gone down hill. We used to love this place, but the last time we went the 2 out of 4 deserts were "stale". After bringing this to the attention of the staff, they gave me some half hearted answer. They just said that that was how the thing was supposed to be, what a bunch of $@#%. Also, never get one of their whole cakes from the back as they are always "Not quite ready", or frozen solid. I asked for a small "fruity" cake for my son's preschool graduation party. They said that they didn't have any in a small size ready, but had a blueberry in the larger size in the back. I asked if it was ready to serve, because we were on our way to the party. They assured me it was ready. I paid for the larger (More expensive) cake, while they were in the back boxing it up. When we got to his party, we took it out to start cutting it for the kids, and it was frozen SOLID. Try to explain to 20 4yr olds that they can't eat the pretty cake in front of them. Its REALLY hard. I called the shop and asked to speak to the manager, he said if I brought this one back, he could give me a small chocolate one instead. He didn't offer to give me my $$$ back, or to apologize. His thing was, I should have checked it before I left. How was I supposed to do that?, jam my finger through the middle of the cake at the register, and say, "Hey, this cakes too FROZEN for me to cut, let me stick my finger in a few more so I can find one thats ready." That being said, go to Konditorei on 5th St. by Mace Ranch, they have good deserts, and the staff is nice. —Aaron.Curtin

2008-08-08 09:15:00 What's with this place lately? Their eggs benedict is the best in Davis and I miss it! The food/coffee continue to be of high quality but the owners and staff seem to be on a steady diet of horse tranquilizers as the service has become painfully, absurdly slow. The staff is always pleasant but in way over their heads (have to disagree with earlier posters - the problem is not the workers themselves, in my experience, but rather the constraints of their situation). The management is also friendly but needs to do something about the service environment. A place this close to campus should be a place where one can quickly drop in for a coffee or espresso on the way to class, but good luck. Management: please do something to help out your overwhelmed staff and make service more efficient! More employees at peak times, a separate area for ordering/drink pickup, something? Until then, I (and others) will take the extra time to go out of my way to the much more pleasant Mishka's or Delta... —TheDude

2008-08-27 13:56:25 I bought a piece of the chocolate raspberry mousse cake, and while it was fresh and tasty it was a major ripoff at $4.50. The server cut me a slice so tiny I was taken aback — not that I wanted a bigger piece of cake, I just didn't expect to pay so much for so little. I said, "Wow, that's not much cake for $4.50" and the server just shrugged and replied, "Yeah." Jeez. Last time I'm buying a dessert here. —SugarPlum

I don't really know what the server was supposed to do, they don't set the prices or the portions I am sure. If it was too expensive for the quantity of cake I'm sure you could have declined to pay for it. And no, I was not your server, nor do I work at Ciocolat. —jakejames

2008-08-27 15:18:21 Ciocolat looked like it had a lot potential with its location, patio seating... if only the pastry and coffee was better. It is true that their pastries are not the freshest and I have returned a couple of days later to see the same mousse sitting in the same location looking a little tired. The coffee is not impressive either I can certainly make a better latte at home. What a shame, its another case of Bistro 33 - looks better than it tastes. —ched

2008-09-13 17:35:59 I agree with others that this place has gone downhill in a very short amount of time. Every time you go in there, the staff seems to be brand new and thus very slow at doing even the simplest tasks. Usually this is a sign of poor management or underpaid workers... can't say whether that is true in this case, but I do wonder. And often you go in to find a very limited selection of items. I hope they turn things around, because when they're "on" they can make delightful desserts. —CovertProfessor

2008-09-13 21:16:58 I wonder what the turnover rate is at this place vs a typical davis restaurant. At some, I definitely see the same staff over long periods of time. But students can be rather transient, so that might account for some of the staffing changes. —IDoNotExist

2008-10-15 02:19:06 I always get the green salad with the yummy dried cranberries on it. When it came out missing my berries last time, I let my waitress know. She told me they must have run out. When I saw another salad go out with plenty of berries, I went up to the counter & inquired. I was given a big bowl of berries to pour over my lonely salad. So, I guess it never hurts to double check. P.S. PLEASE add a vegan dessert item to your menu. We would be so grateful! —AprilAries

2008-10-16 22:12:21 Had lunch here today for the first time with a few friends. The location is nice, and the decor is cute. I had the mushroom lasagna. It was, sadly, not very good. Bland, soggy, and topped with unpleasantly textured cheese. It's not inedible, just not good. I also ordered the white chocolate smoothie, and that also left something to be desired for, unfortunately. The service, as others have noticed, is slow. I have yet to try their desserts, but I don't think I will come back here anytime soon, having paid around $14 for a bland meal. —kthrnngo

2008-10-24 12:01:43 Their mocha pot is probably about the best thing I have ever tasted...sadly they don't have it too often. —summerinabaddon

2008-11-02 12:02:13 my first impression was that their desserts are a tad expensive. but they're delicious for lunch! the breakfast menu items are actually large (enough for my boyfriend to feel full) and the quiche i ordered was HUGE. it was just a thick, generous slice. and absolutely delicious. I miss quiches from La Madeleine back home in Dallas, so it made me happy that there's a place that serves good quiches in Davis. —Chibi

2008-12-04 15:01:53 unlike so many of the cafés in town (and especially the delta of venus) the staff and owner at ciocolat have been unwelcoming (and even outright rude) to members of the campus community who have use this space to eat lunch (paying for overpriced usually mediocre food) and meet with students. for this reason, i will no longer be giving ciocolat my business. —MagaliRabasa